The Spirit of All Nations.
KANONHSTATON – Eight years ago, Six Nations land protectors led by a group of women including Janie Jamieson and Dawn Smith reclaimed 40 hectares of land earmarked for a 600 home housing development. The development was made without consultation with Six Nations and without the authority to do so, since the land was never legally surrendered for sale.
SIX NATIONS – Tehennei’kwe:tarons, aka David R. Maracle, is a multi-talented Mohawk artist/musician/poet/chef/activist, and Native youth worker from Tyendinaga that most people likely would have heard before knowing who he was or even what instruments he creates with.
In an attempt to stop vandalism at all schools on the territory, Elected Chief Ava Hill stated,
“Public Works staff informed us that there has been a lot of vandalism at all of the schools in our community with windows being broken and alarms going off. It not only costs money to repair the broken windows but also staff time to attend the schools to figure out why alarms are going off. We will be installing cameras at the schools. We’ll be asking the police to patrol the schools on a regular basis and if we catch the perpetrators of these vandalisms, they will be punished and they will be required to pay the damages that are being caused.”
SIX NATIONS – The revolutionary and controversial Kearns disintegrator actually works. That was the determination made by a committee struck by the Elected Band Council to observe and oversee the test running of a garbage disposal system that promises to clean up Six Nations’ critical waste management problem.
HAMILTON – A no-jury trial has begun this week for Travis Squire-Hill who stands accused of two counts of criminal negligence in the operation of a motor vehicle causing death, criminal negligence in the operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm, two counts of impaired driving causing death, impaired driving causing bodily harm, failure to remain at the scene of an accident, driving while disqualified, theft of motor vehicle and breach of probation.
SIX NATIONS – Six Nations Economic Development held another information session last Thursday at the Six Nations Community Hall in regards to the Port Dover and Nanticoke Wind Projects, which was poorly attended. Less then 20 people were in attendance to listen to Community Planner, Amy Lickers talk of how the project was already operating without consulting with the Six Nations community first. “The project which is owned and operated by Capital Power has already been constructed and started in November 2013 and consists of 58 wind turbines,” stated Lickers. Despite this, those gathered didn’t seem to be concerned as to why the project was already given the green light without consultation with the Six Nations community.
TORONTO – The graphic evidence of the murder of a Plains Indian child from the late 19th century that went up for auction at Toronto auction house as “decorative art” was abruptly removed from display and taken out of the auction’s catalogue Monday after public outcry.
TYENDINAGA – The Tyendinaga Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte administration office is expected to move into a new building at the end of June. According to Daniel J. Brant, the Chief Administration Officer, this move is a long time coming. Brant states, “The current building has just outlived its usefulness”.
TORONTO – Cordillera Day, an annual commemoration of the Indigenous peoples’ struggle in the Cordillera region in the northern Philippines, was celebrated in Toronto. Amidst skits, traditional dances and food, speakers discussed solidarity for Indigenous peoples’ defense of their lands and their right to self-determination in the Philippines and in Canada.
On Sunday April 27, 2014 the Coalition to Stop Bill C-10 held a successful meeting with some 40 people from about a dozen different organizations in attendance. The group was evenly made up of both native and non-native people and communities and businesses from Moraviantown, Six Nations, Toronto, Fort Erie and elsewhere were represented.
After the federal government paid nearly $2 million to destroy homes on a condemned, flood-ravaged Manitoba First Nations reserve slated for demolition, dozens of buildings were moved off the land and sold, CTV News has learned.
On March 28 Taylor David began his journey from Victoria, British Columbia that will end on June 21 in Ottawa. David states that “this walk is done to honor our grandmothers, grandfathers, brothers, sisters, and anyone affected by the residential school atrocity.
The Ontario Convenience Store Association has delivered 20,000 postcards signed by voters to Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne urging her not increase taxes on tobacco. An increased tax on cigarettes would hurt convenience stores, but would be a boon to the so called “contraband” tobacco market that already flourishes in many First Nations communities.
A recent study Walking in their shoes published by Anishnawbe Health Toronto finds that the average age of death for users of four “Aboriginal” health and social service centers in Toronto are shockingly below the average Torontonian at 37 years. The Onkwehon:we male clients who died over the period of the study at the four centers had the average age of 34, with women at 41.
In the Great Law as told by Jake Thomas, there would be a time that a strong wind would come in and threaten to blow down our great tree of peace. It was said that the tree would fall, but that it would not touch the ground because Haudenosaunee people would care for it so deeply that they would stand together around it, and that it would rest upon their joined arms.
